Description: This session will recap the history of the involvement of the actuarial profession in the debates on health care reform. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Vol. 21, No. 4b.

Description: President Smith's speech focuses on the need for actuaries to be better spokepeople and advocates for good sound improvement in social programs like Social Security, Medicare and Health Care reform.

Description: Preview of the May 2010 issue of Health Watch, with focus on the growing importance of actuaries, particularly in light of new developments in health care reform, clinical integration, enterprise risk management, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act.

Description: The author discusses a definition of an actuary that he suggested several years earlier, noting that the public has a right to know why we think we constitute a profession, and why it should care. The author’s definition is: “that professional who is trained in evaluating the current financial implications of future contingent events.”

Description: This 1978 session discussion included important challenges to the actuarial profession that result from current social and economic changes, opportunities for actuarial input in a political process, and expanding horizons for the actuarial profession. From Record of Society of Actuaries, Vol. 4, No. 1.

Description: This panel discussion is from the 1991 Meeting of the Society of Actuaries, held June 3-5 in Colorado Springs. The panelists debunk myths, the conventional wisdom that actuaries have no place in the public policy arena, whether because the profession is too small to influence public policymakers, or legislators just don't want to hear from professionals whose work is so technical in nature and specialized in its application, or that It's not really necessary to become too involved in public policymaking, because what goes on in legislatures just doesn't affect actuaries’ day-to-day working lives. The panelists provide insights on lending actuarial expertise to policymaking debates. Discussion from participants is included. From the Record of Society of Actuaries, Volume 17, No. 3A.

Description: This panel discussion is from the 1991 Meeting of the Society of Actuaries, held May 16-17 in New York. The panelists debunk myths, the conventional wisdom that actuaries have no place in the public policy arena, whether because the profession is too small to influence public policymakers, or legislators just don't want to hear from professionals whose work is so technical in nature and specialized in its application, or that It's not really necessary to become too involved in public policymaking, because what goes on in legislatures just doesn't affect actuaries’ day-to-day working lives. The panelists provide insights on lending actuarial expertise to policymaking debates. Discussion from participants is included. From the Record of Society of Actuaries, Volume 17, No. 2.

Description: Feature article discussing the purpose of the SOA’s Reinsurance Section’s LEARN initiative.

Description: An actuary, Jim Toole, speaks out on racial disparities in infant mortality.

Description: A study funded by the Committee on Finance Research of the Society of Actuaries on actuaries serving individuals. Focus would be on consulting to private individuals to assist with retirement issues as well as other insurance related issues.